By Sheryl Hamlin The April 3, 3019 Santa Paula Council meeting agenda contained 12 items in the Consent Calendar. Recall that the Consent Calendar is used to approve perfunctory items for which no discussion or explanation should be necessary. Other than Consent Item 7, which was pulled by Council Member Sobel, there were no questions […]

By Sheryl Hamlin During the presentations section of the April 3, 2019 Santa Paula Council meeting, William LeFeuvre, SPARC Board President, informed the council and the audience of the upcoming SPARC Community Survey. The survey is being conducted under the guidance of the Institute of Human/Animal Studies at the University of Davis. Mr. LeFeuvre stated […]

By Sheryl Hamlin While the Santa Paula wastewater plant (now called Water Recycling Facility) has been in the news for the last six years, the city’s wastewater collection system has grown and served the city since 1930. From the staff report of March 20, 2019, background for the collection of wastewater in Santa Paula describes […]

By Sheryl Hamlin Two important items on the March 20, 2019 Santa Paula City Council Meeting were 1) the mid-year financial report and 2) the new contract for the sewage collection. The sewage will be covered in a second report. Mid-Year Financial Report The Assistant Finance Director Anthony Rainey presented the mid-year financial report saying […]

By Sheryl Hamlin During Public Presentations of the March 20, 2019 Santa Paula City Council Meeting, Michael Schouten, Chair of the Santa Paula Youth Advisory Council presented the productive journey of the Santa Paula Youth Advisory Council (YAC) as well as goals for future. Michael Schouten acknowledged the other committee members: • Vice Chair Nathan […]

By Sheryl Hamlin This article elaborates on the March 18, 2019 Community meeting where the possibility of a relocation of city services to two different locations was discussed. Read that report here. No materials were provided comparing the size and footprint of the current City Hall and municipal services which stretches from Mill to 10th […]

By Sheryl Hamlin The Community Workshop on March 18, 2019 at the Community Center brought out about seventy five people. The program was broken into three segments: Street Repairs, Relocation of City Departments and Audience Questions. Pavement Management and Street Repair The subtle difference between this 2019 street repair proposal and the previous street repair […]

By Sheryl Hamlin Santa Paula Police Chief Steve McClean presented an overview of how the SPPD is responding to the homeless situation. He said that five years ago it was gangs; now the department is inundated with calls relating to the homeless. Read a previous report where a group of merchants spoke at council about […]

By Sheryl Hamlin With a full house in the guest section, as well as in the lobby and around the dais, the Assistant City Manager opened with “this is a community meeting and we are seeking your input”. The council is currently revisiting the cannabis ordinance which currently prohibits everything except testing. The staff intends […]

By Sheryl Hamlin The February 20, 2019 Santa Paula Council saw citizen participation in multiple areas: 1) the Ventura County Community College District, 2) Clean Energy, 3) Construction Information, 4) the Santa Paula Chamber and 5) Homelessness. Ventura County Community College District (VCCCD) This topic is not new and the presentation reflected little change from […]